"South Carolina Should Proclaim April 23rd as the Turkish Children's Day"
From: YUKSEL OKTAY
To: governor@govoepp.state.sc.us
Sent: Thursday, January 30, 2003 1:50 AM
Subject: State of the State Address and

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
January 30, 2003
Honorable Governor Mark Sanford, Governor's Mansion Columbia, South Carolina

In your State of South Carolina State Address, you were absolutely correct in your assessment of Ataturk, very much the way former House Speaker Gingrich did several years ago when he praised Ataturk's educational reforms among others.

In his book "On Leadership", Mr. John W. Gardner lists fourteen attributes for effective leadership, including physical vitality and stamina, intelligence, willingness to accept responsibilities and probably the most important one, adaptability and flexibility of approach. For the last attribute, Mr. Gardner presents Kemal Ataturk as the model and states:

"It was said of Kemal Ataturk, the greatest figure in modern Turkish history, that he could shift swiftly and without second thought from a failing tactic to another approach, and if that did not work, to still another. Whether the fields of action was war or diplomacy or domestic governance, he rarely clung to an approach that was not producing results. His goals were stable but his tactics flexible."

In the same book, on the trance of nonrenewal, Mr. Gardner again gives the example of Kemal Ataturk for renewing a nation and writing history and states:

"In some systems that have gone too long without renewal, people understand that change is needed and restless. This was spectacularly true of Turkey when Kemal Ataturk, one of the great reformers of modern times, was a young officer. Long before World War I he had joined the Young Turks who sought a constitutional government for the decaying 600 year old Ottoman Empire. After the war, he drove out the various foreign powers threatening Turkey's autonomy, created the Turkish republic, and then as President, launched an extraordinary series of reforms. He dis-established Islam as the state religion; abolished old codes subordinating women; substituted the Roman alphabet for the Arabic; instituted a new civil and penal code; abolished the traditional, mainly religious educational system, and established secular states".

Mr. Governor, there were many problems during the First World War where Turkey was an unwilling participant. The Armenians and Greeks took advantage of this and either rebelled against their own government or invaded under the tutelage of foreign powers. Here is what Ataturk said about the Armenian issue:

"The Armenian Issue, which aims at meeting the economic interests of the capitalist world rather than bearing in mind the veritable interests of the Armenians themselves, was best resolved with the Kars agreement. The friendly ties between two industrious people coexisting peacefully for centuries have been satisfactorily established anew". Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, 1/3/1922, Inaugural Speech of the 3rd Year of Session of Turkish Grand National assembly.

The Greek invasion of Anatolia by Greeks was a tragedy, not only for Turks but also for Greeks and their supporters as well.

The Greek army invaded Turkey on May 16, 1919 with false hopes for a greater Greece and the support of the European powers and caused tremendous destruction along their way in Anatolia and massacred tens of thousands of innocent people. They were stopped by the great soldier Mustafa Kemal and the Turkish people, and the lives of captured Greek soldiers army commanders were spared. After the war, Ataturk and the Greek President Venizelos worked towards peace between their two countries and Venizelos nominated Ataturk for the Nobel Peace Prize.

As a concerned Turkish-American, I respectfully request that your Excellency retract your apology and issue proclamation honoring April 23rd as the Turkish Children's Day.

Respectfully
Yuksel Oktay
New Jersey

Azeri gratitude for U.S. Extension the Waiver of Section 907
The Honorable President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC 20510

Dear Mr. President:

On behalf of all the members and friends of Azerbaijan Society of America, please accept our gratitude for extending the Waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. As Azerbaijani-Americans, we knew you act upon the national-interests of our country, instead of some outspoken special-interests groups.

We knew, when we voted for you, building a strong nation and ensuring peace in the new millennium in the global marketplace was going to be your primary challenge. We believed your determination for ensuring global peace meant that America, "the only super-power in the world," can respond to aggressors who determine that they will unexpectedly force their neighbors and rape the natural resources of the land. We believe, you will ask the foreign demagogues to consider the cost and loss before violating the rights of its neighbors. We believe, you will recognize and appreciate all the nations who are unconditionally supporting our nation.

Azerbaijani-American community recognizes your determination to win the war on terrorism. We realize winning the war on terrorism is not for yourself but for the people of our nation and for the people around the world.

The friendship that exists between the Azerbaijan and American governments and between the Azerbaijani and American people is strong. The unconditional support from Azerbaijan's President Heydar Aliyev on fighting terrorism proved, Azerbaijan is our strong ally. With the help of our allies we will win the war on terrorism and also ensure that our peaceful interests are protected around the world.

We welcomed your determination on extending the waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act , but Sir, we need to do more, it needs to be repealed. It needs to be repealed not only for sake of Azerbaijan, but also for advancing America's interests in the region. This unjust and unfair legislation with its distorted logic and wording against Azerbaijan, was initiated by a special-interests group, who represented the aggressors, occupying close to 20% of Azerbaijan's territories and caused territorial devastation to approximately 1 million refugees and displaced citizens.

Mr. President, again I want to assure you that as Azerbaijani-Americans living here in this great nation, are standing by you. You have proven your strength as a strong leader and we hope you will make the right decisions to ensure a peaceful future for all of us and continue in recognizing and appreciating our allies in the world.

Respectfully,

Ms. Tomris Azeri
President, Azerbaijan Society of America